…brilliantly coloured in reds, yellows, blacks, and purples.
Showing strong feelings: complete, absolute, etc.
2.36 You can emphasize your feelings about something that you mention by putting an adjective such as complete, absolute, or utter in front of a noun.
He made me feel like a complete idiot.
Some of it was absolute rubbish.
…utter despair.
…pure bliss.
You generally use an adjective of this kind only when the noun shows your opinion about something.
Because they are used to show strong feelings, these adjectives are called emphasizing adjectives.
Here is a list of emphasizing adjectives:
absolute
complete
entire
outright
perfect
positive
pure
real
total
true
utter
adjectives for showing disapproval
2.37
Everybody in the whole stinking town was loaded with money.
Shut that blinking door!
Here is a list of adjectives used informally for emphasis:
blinking
blithering
blooming
blundering
crashing
flaming
freezing
piddling
raving
scalding
stinking
thumping
thundering
whopping
2.38 Many of these adjectives are usually used with one particular noun or adjective after them: blithering idiot, blundering idiot, crashing bore, raving lunatic, thundering nuisance, freezing cold, scalding hot, piddling little …, thumping great …, whopping great ….
He’s driving that car like a raving lunatic!
I’ve got a stinking cold.
…a piddling little car.
very as an emphasizing adjective
2.39 The word very is sometimes used to emphasize a noun, in expressions like the very top and the very end.
…at the very end of the shop.
…the very bottom of the hill.
These molecules were formed at the very beginning of history.
Making the reference more precise: postdeterminers
2.40 There is a small group of adjectives that are used in a very similar way to determiners (see paragraphs 1.162 to 1.251) to make the reference more precise. These are called postdeterminers, because their place in a noun phrase is immediately after the determiner, if there is one, and before any other adjectives.
…the following brief description.
…certain basic human qualities.
…improvements in the last few years.
…further technological advance. He wore his usual old white coat….
…the only sensible thing to do.
You often need to make it clear precisely what you are referring to. For example, if you say Turn left at the tall building someone might ask which tall building you mean. If you say Turn left at the next tall building, there can be no doubt which one you mean. The postdeterminer next picks it out precisely.
Here is a list of adjectives that are postdeterminers:
additional
certain
chief
entire
existing
first
following
further
last
main
next
only
opposite
other
particular
past
present
previous
principal
remaining
same
special
specific
usual
Some of these adjectives are also ordinary classifying adjectives.
He had children from a previous marriage.
There are two main reasons for this.
Here is a list of postdeterminers that are also classifying adjectives:
additional
chief
existing
further
main
other
particular
past
previous
principal
remaining
specific
Adjectives that are used to show the position of something are also used for precise reference.
…the middle button of her black leather coat.
…the top 100 German companies.
Here is a list of adjectives sometimes used to talk about the position of something as well as for precise reference:
left
right
upper
lower
top
bottom
middle
end
front
back
Postdeterminers can also be used with numbers. This is explained in paragraph 2.219.
Special classes of adjectives
2.41 Most adjectives can be used both before the noun and after a linking verb, but there are some that are only used in one position or the other.
There are a few adjectives that are always or almost always used in front of a noun and are never or rarely used after a linking verb. These adjectives are called attributive adjectives.
Examples are atomic and outdoor. You can talk about an atomic explosion, but you do not say The explosion was atomic. You can talk about outdoor pursuits, but you do not say Their pursuits are outdoor.
adjectives that are only used in front of a noun
2.42 A few qualitative adjectives (see paragraphs 2.22 to 2.25) are only used in front of a noun. Here is a list of qualitative adjectives always used in this way:
adoring
belated
chequered
choked
commanding
fateful
flagrant
fleeting
knotty
paltry
punishing
ramshackle
scant
searing
thankless
unenviable
Most adjectives that are only used in front of a noun are classifying adjectives (see paragraphs 2.26 to 2.28). Here is a list of classifying adjectives used attributively:
atomic
bridal
cardiac
countless
cubic
digital
east
eastern
eventual
existing
federal
forensic
indoor
institutional
introductory
investigative
judicial
lone
maximum
nationwide
neighbouring
north
northern
occasional
orchestral
outdoor
phonetic
preconceived
remedial
reproductive
smokeless
south
southern
subterranean
supplementary